The healing continues, and so does the packing for home

A blurry wine tasting photo

We are better! Yes, the grueling sickness that Joan and I both were suffering is steadily leaving us. This is one of the worst illnesses that either of us can ever remember having. Two doctor visits and a couple rounds of antibiotics and finally after two full weeks we are pretty much back to normal.

After skipping Palm Sunday services because of the illness we did very little for the next week. We did feel good enough to attend the Wednesday night concert “Motown.” The program was very good and we thoroughly enjoyed it.

We also attended the last Market Daze and bought a little gift for a coming shower. I can’t say much more about that because the person who is getting the gift may be a reader of this post.

I also skipped the Tuesday hike to Aspen Grove because I was just not strong enough.

A pleasant outdoor tasting bar

On Thursday (March 24) I attended my final Men’s Bible study which we held at the Voyager Bar and Grill for breakfast. A total of 18 guys (out of the 20 who routinely attended the study) were at the breakfast.

I was starting to feel well enough to borrow a high ladder and get on the roof of the trailer to seal the rubber roof as I do every year.

Of course, I had to endure the constant taunts of folks walking by telling me about the man who fell of the roof of his RV and died several years ago. I appreciate their concern, but I’m going to print up a sign next year that says: “I am aware that a man died falling from the roof of his RV in 2013. Trust me, I do not plan on replicating that feat.”

Chuck and Jane on the Seven Falls trail

The roof and trailer washing was finished on Thursday and then Friday I spent the day waxing the trailer. With an 11-foot high and 33-foot long trailer, that’s a pretty big wax job as you can likely imagine. But the trailer is all shiny and ready to head to its summer storage in Flagstaff.

On Saturday we picked up our friends Barry and Darcel for our annual wine tasting trip. We spent all day Saturday touring the Sonoita wine area in Southern Arizona and added a couple new wineries to the itinerary this year. Joan and I buy a few bottles of wine as a donation to the Family Literacy Center auction which is coming up the end of April.

Sunday was another quiet day around the trailer. On Monday morning I met my friends Chuck and Jane from Fenton, Michigan who are renting a condo in the Sabino Canyon area and a long postponed hike to Seven Falls was finally in motion.

Desert flowers in bloom

Monday night Joan and I went to Meet Me at Maynard’s and enjoyed our final MMM event for this year. We met some friends from the resort at Thunder Canyon Brewery and had a nice dinner. Some of them headed to the Grand Canyon the following day for a hike down to the bottom of the canyon. Not sure how that all worked out yet as they are still there as I write this.

We had a beautiful day to hike and enjoyed a wonderful 8-mile hike into Bear Canyon. The next day, I thought I was going to the final hike in the resort, which is always the Chirachua Mountain hike. Unfortunately, they are doing extensive road work in the park and the hike had to be cancelled at the last minute.

Another trip to Seven Falls

So when I showed up for the Tuesday hike I learned that the planned hike for the day was, wait for it, Seven Falls. So, yes, I did the exact same hike two days in a row, but I had fun with a small group of hikers from the park and the views are always stunning from the falls.

After arriving home I got cleaned up and then Joan and I headed to our last Tuesday night potluck. We were surprised to find so many folks still in the park and potluck as usually the place clears out pretty quickly after Easter.

On Wednesday, I went to the barber shop and had my ears lowered and my beard trimmed for only the second time since I have been here. I was in desperate need of a haircut, but the recent sickness had delayed that important bit of grooming.

My lunch perch view at Seven Falls

We had tickets for the Tucson High School steel drum band for Wednesday night and decided to give it a try. We weren’t expecting much, but boy were we surprised. An energetic group of 18 high schoolers put on a magnificent and high energy show that brought about 500 seniors to their feet dancing and clapping by the end.

We loved the music and the kids and stayed after a few minutes to thank the kids for their performance. We hope they raised plenty of money for their coming invitation trip to play at Disneyland. Jovert is the name of the band and if you happen to come across their concert, go, just go, it’s well worth the time.

So Thursday (today) is Joan’s birthday and after I got up and worked out she opted for a day at the casino. As I don’t enjoy that activity very much, I decided to drop her off and let her play to her heart’s content and picked her up later in the afternoon and then we went to dinner at the resort for her birthday.

Looking back at Seven Falls from the trail

Things are starting to wrap up for the season here in the park. People are pulling out in big numbers every day and they are not being replaced. So things are starting to look a little empty here. We’ll contribute to that emptiness on Monday.

I’m going to try and post again in the next day or two, because I am doing a solo hike tomorrow and it’s one of my favorites, but I’ll tell you (and show you) after I complete it. 

Really hard to believe that another three months in Arizona is over and that it’s time to head back to Michigan. We have some more fun things to do on the way home, not the least of them stops to see both my lovely sisters.

Sick. But some fun

Me, Joan, Greg and Pam at Kartchner Caverns

This post is long overdue. We’re going to start with the last few days because they can be summed up in one word: Sick. Both of us. Which meant from Tuesday night until Saturday we did almost nothing but hide in our trailer and try to get well.

I’m one of those guys who brags about “never” being sick. Well, not anymore. Whatever I had, and there is a dispute among the two medical professionals that treated Joan and I whether it was the flu or some other respiratory infection, it was completely debilitating. Walking to the shower felt like a ten-mile hike.

Completely frustrating to be sick in a place with perfect weather every day. Sitting inside a trailer, staring out at beautiful skies and not being able to enjoy them is tough.

Kitt Peak sign

We’re not completely sure how we came down with this crud, but it would appear it was a continuation of the sickness caught by our friend Greg while he was here. He was pretty convinced that he contracted the bug during our Thursday night visit to Kitt Peak when a lady kept coughing on him. More on Kitt Peak a little later.

As I write this is it Saturday, March 19, and we are both starting to come out of the fog we’ve been in for three days. Between this week and the two days in the hospital earlier in our visit I’ve lost nearly a week of my Arizona time.

When I woke up this past Wednesday feeling like I had been run over by a truck. I headed to the local Urgent Care about 9 a.m. Despite their name the “urgency” didn’t seem to be there and it took all of three hours to get me seen and diagnosed.

It was a close call because Joan had a 1 p.m. appointment to have a permanent crown put on the tooth she broke the fourth day we were here. To complicate things further Kolb Road, the main drag for us in and out of the park and to major attractions has been restricted to one lane in each direction while road repairs are done.

Sunset on Kitt Peak

But Joan got her tooth fixed and I picked up my Z-Pak from the pharmacy to kill whatever infection I had. It was later on Wednesday that Joan started to feel the more serious effects of the “bug” and she headed to the Voyager clinic Thursday morning where she was diagnosed with the flu. So she is taking Tamiflu and I’m using my Z-Pak. We are both getting better so apparently it doesn’t really matter what we have.

The only time I was out of the trailer between Wednesday and Saturday was for my Thursday morning Men’s Bible Study and then Thursday night’s Experiencing God class. Friday night, while Joan was resting on the couch I headed to the resort’s “End of the Year” party to pick up dinner for both of us. Various groups in the park sell food at the party as a fund raiser and I picked up a couple hamburgers and a couple root beer floats and headed back to the trailer.

Hiking on Gabe Zimmerman trail

We missed the dance and other activities associated with the “End of the Year” party. Here’s some other things we missed because of mean ol’ Mr. Virus: A lecture on Arizona birds (you know Joan is really sick when she misses a lecture on birds). We missed another party for RVers. On Friday Joan passed up the Women’s Bible Study tea because she didn’t want to infect any of the women there.

Unfortunately, I did find time to watch some of the MSU basketball game against Middle Tennessee State, so that didn’t help the healing process much.

So as you can see the last few days have been pretty empty, except for coughing and achiness.

Now let’s get you caught up with what we have done.

On Sunday, March 6, we attended church services at the park and spent a quiet day at the trailer getting things ready for the arrival of our friends Greg and Pam from Michigan.

Eating Fry Bread at San Xavier Mission

So Monday, we picked up Pam and Greg at the airport and headed to Walmart so they could food shop for supplies for the casita they rented. After that we returned to the Voyager and got them checked into their casita which was across the street from our space.

After that we drove downtown and signed them up for Meet Me at Maynard’s and did the walk and then had dinner at “Fired Pie.” They had a long hard day of traveling and once home they headed back to the casita for a little rest and relaxation.

Of all things, rain was in the forecast for Tuesday, the first rain we’ve had in over a month and only the second rainy day we’ve had. Fortunately, I was following the forecast and booked a tour of the Kartchner Caverns for that day figuring a cave tour was the perfect activity for a rainy day.

Greg and Pam joined us for the Tuesday potluck dinner in the ballroom and had a great time meeting some of our friends.

Casa Grande Ruins

Wednesday was a quiet day with Joan and Pam going to the aquacise class in the morning and then we all visited Market Daze in the park. We hung out in the afternoon and then we all went to the “Sonoran Dogs” bluegrass show in the ballroom.

On Thursday, I went to my Men’s Bible study and then about 11 a.m. we headed to the Arizona Sonoran Desert Museum to see the afternoon raptor free flight show and then about 3 p.m. we headed to Kitt Peak National Observatory for our Night Observation Program.

Kitt Peak is about 7,000-feet high and much cooler than the valley floor. Joan and I have never done this program before so we had high expectations, all of which were met.  We arrived at the peak about 4 p.m. and spent some time touring the visitor’s center until the start of the program about 5:20 p.m. All the cars were lined up as we arrived as you have to drive down the mountain without headlights for a mile after the program so as not to disturb the ongoing research being down on the mountain.

Hutch's Pool hike rest stop

The program included a turkey sandwich dinner and then the group of 40 people was split so that the groups could take turns looking through one of the telescopes on the mountain. While one group was viewing the telescope the rest of us were using binoculars and a star chart to locate constellations and major stars in the sky.

We were extremely fortunate that the sky was 100 percent clear that night and the viewing on the mountain is spectacular. In a light free environment like the mountain it is hard to describe the blanket of stars in the night sky. With just the high powered binoculars we were able to see incredible stars and planets.

It had been since my Navy days since I used a star locator and it brought back a lot of memories.

Then it was our turn at the telescope and 10 of us headed up the hill to a telescope where we spent a little over an hour viewing galaxies, stars and Jupiter through the lens. You could clearly see the moons of Jupiter. The vast expanse of space always fascinates me and seeing it like this just leaves me awe struck.

Hutch's Pools lunch stop

Following our tour of the telescope we headed to our cars and followed the dark convoy down the mountain for a mile. At that point we were allowed to have our headlights back on for the 11-mile windy trip down the mountain.

Once down off the mountain we traveled through the Border Patrol checkpoint. I think the agent was used to the nightly convoy coming through, but indicated he would have been happier if it was ten minutes later when his relief would have been on duty.

We all agreed of all the things we did together during the week, this was the best.

Friday was another quiet day around the park with Pam and Greg enjoying some pool time and later Greg and I visited the billiards room and played several games of 8-ball, all dominated by Greg, who I now call “Lapeer Fats.”

It was about this time that Greg began to realize that the woman who was coughing on him on Kitt Peak may have given him a bug. Through his brother Greg got a Z-Pak right away.

Small waterfall at Hutch's Pools

On Saturday, despite not being 100 percent Greg, Pam, Joan and I headed to the Gabe Zimmerman trail (named for the aid of Gabby Giffords, who was killed in a mass shooting a few years ago) and we did about a 3-mile segment. This is also part of the Arizona Trail. Pam and I did a little longer segment while the ailing Greg and Joan stayed behind.

The day was perfect for hiking.

Sunday, Joan and I went to chapel and Greg and Pam enjoyed a quiet day at the pool and later watching the Spartans win the Big Ten basketball championship. Greg worked on getting better as well.

During the weekend we were entertained by the U.S. Air Force Thunderbirds who were in town for the air show at Davis-Monthan Air Force Base. We could see much of the show right from our front porch so we missed the traffic and crowds but still saw much of the show.

Sunday night we grilled steaks and had a quiet night at home.

Our picnic table at Hutch's pools

Too quickly Monday came and it was time to say good-bye to Pam and Greg. First though, we headed to San Xavier Mission Church where we had a tour and some fry bread.  I never miss an opportunity to have fry bread.

After leaving there we went to Casa Grande ruins on the way to meeting up with Greg’s daughter, Chelsea at a great Mexican restaurant in Chandler, Arizona.

Dinner was fun, but over too quickly and Joan and I transferred Greg and Pam’s luggage to Chelsea’s vehicle and bid adieu to our friends.

It was later that I started realizing that I may be coming down with something, but held with my plans to hike on Tuesday. Tuesday’s hike was to Hutch’s Pools in the Catalina Mountains. This is a strenuous 10-mile round trip hike which I did with flying colors, but after attending the Tuesday night potluck I realized that I was well on my way to a major illness.

That brings us back to where we began this saga. I apologize for the disjointed nature of this post, but I am still suffering the effects of my illness. We skipped church this Sunday because we are both still pretty weak from our illness.

A big party and a 'hysterical cow' highlight week 8 in Tucson

Michigan Party set up

 This week was another busy one here at Voyager.  As I teased in the last post, much of Monday was spent getting things ready for the big Michigan State Party in the afternoon. In 2012, the year we first began coming to Voyager we were disappointed to learn that Michigan was pretty much the only state that didn’t have a day set aside for a party.

As it turned out, the folks who had been organizing and running the party for the previous 15-plus years had justifiably tired of doing all the work and collecting money for dinner tickets as the previous party was held at a swanky restaurant in the foothills of Tucson.

So for the past few years the party languished until last winter when Joan met up with Marcia (of Marcia and Jerry of Michigan) and they decided it was time to revive the party, but in a simpler form. So over the summer last year they stayed in touch and when we arrived here in January the planning began in full steam.

The guests line up for chow

The date we reserved was Feb. 29, leap day, and the one concern we had was that we had no back up for the party if the weather was bad. 99 out of hundred days that’s not a problem, but there can be days when bad weather blows in and if that had happened to put it in a word we were – screwed.

Our party was going to be on the Voyager patio and there was no room available to move in the event of inclement weather. Our concerns were unfounded as we were blessed with a bright, clear day with temperatures in the low 80s at party time.

The other concern was whether people would sign up and show up. By the Saturday before the party we had 47 people signed up for the party and when the party started we had more than 60 people on hand, so another unfounded fear.  People, mostly from the Grand Rapids and west Michigan area, showed up and brought great food. The party was only supposed to be snacks, but they were substantial enough that no one needed dinner after.

The Michigan flag

Jerry, a former school principal handled the MC duties well and I ran a little Michigan trivia contest that was great fun. We collected donations and by the end of the evening everyone declared the party a success and urged us to duplicate it next year. Simple is good, they all said. The donations covered the cost of paper products, our portion of the BYOB liquor license and we had $28 left over to prime the pump for next year.

We have already submitted an application for another party in 2017, but we have asked for a back up room in case we aren’t as lucky next year with the weather as we were this year. What really helped was that as the party broke up everyone pitched in and helped us put away the tables and chairs we borrowed from the resort and we were cleaned up in just a few minutes.

At 7 p.m. Monday, just steps from where we hosted our party from 4-6 p.m. was the annual “Fun Band Concert” which is a great event where talented, and not-so-talented, folks put on a two-hour concert using homemade and regular instruments with the audience being urged to join in on the singing. A couple of the men from my Men’s Bible Study were in the band and seemed to have a very good time.

'Sprung Spring' trail sign in Madera Canyon

Tuesday morning came early and the hiking group headed for Madera Canyon for the “Josephine Saddle” hike, which is a really good hike.  It is a moderate-to-difficult hike that begins at 5,500 feet and goes up to about 7,100-feet over a 3.7-mile trail. The vistas are outstanding, but the payoff is the memorial at the saddle for three boy scouts who died in a snowstorm in 1958. Weather forecasting in 1958 was not as precise as it is now and no one knew that there was a major snowstorm on the way that day. 

Six scouts headed out to summit Mt. Baldy. On the way up the trail (the same trail we came down on Tuesday) it started to rain and then snow. Three of the scouts unsuccessfully tried to convince the other three scouts that maybe they should head back down to camp and try the hike another day.

Jim & Jim at the "Saddle"

The three that continued on the hike were not seen alive again. It took 19 days to find the three bodies and the snowstorm that hit that day still ranks as one of the top three worst snowstorms in this area in recorded history. There is a book about the incident called “Death Clouds on Mt. Baldy,” and I hope to pick it up this summer and read it. It was written by the sister of one of the three scouts who came down off the hill and survived.

Once back at the Voyager, Joan and I attended the weekly potluck in the ballroom and then returned home for a quiet night at home.

After my workout and Joan’s aquacise on Wednesday we headed to the ballroom to attend the annual “Show and Tell” which is the day that all the crafters in the park display their wares. Last year I had a carving in the show, but with our visitors and travel I haven’t really had time to do much at the “Easy Bleeders Wood Carving Shop” this year. I did stop in there on Friday and got some advice for a little project I’m working on, but will likely have to finish at home.

The 'Saddle' Memorial sign and stones

We spent a quiet afternoon at the trailer, me working on my Thursday night Bible lesson and Joan read her magazines.

On Wednesday night we attended the “You Have Friend” concert here at the park, which was a tribute to the music of the late 60s and early 1970s and included heavy doses of James Taylor, Carly Simon, Simon and Garfunkel, Janis Joplin and Carole King. The music was mellow and you could tell some of the older members of the audience were not really into it as much as those of us at the shallower end of the age pool.

Interestingly, the female lead singer Mindy Ronstadt, is the niece of Linda Ronstadt, who as you all know was a successful singer. The Ronstadts are a big name family here in Tucson, as many members of the family have distinguished themselves in music, politics and public service. The bus station downtown is the “Ronstadt Transportation Center.”

Show and Tell glass fusion class

My Men’s Bible Study was Thursday morning and then after that we did laundry, so that was not such an exciting day until about 5:30 p.m. when we attended the annual “Hiker-Biker” potluck which is always fun and includes many of the folks that I hike with each week.

At 7 p.m. I led the “Experiencing God” Bible study in the absence of the resort’s pastor and everyone came well prepared and we had a lively and interesting discussion.

As you may remember, Joan broke a tooth in our first week here and had a temporary crown installed. We have been waiting for approval of our insurance carrier for the permanent crown which never came. Joan made a call to the insurance company last week and suddenly we got approval, so Friday was the day we headed to Dr. Gold’s (isn’t that a great name for a dentist) for the preparatory work for the permanent crown. That took much of the morning and we had another quiet afternoon.

Show and Tell stain glass class

We received an invite to come to dinner at the RV of our friends Marcia and Jerry who helped with the Michigan Party and arrived to find a neighbor of theirs in the resort playing his bagpipes. So that was really cool.  There were a number of Canadians sitting around the patio and we had a delightful time meeting some new folks and enjoying a fine steak dinner.

We debriefed our party experience and made initial preparations for next year’s party.

I was up early on Saturday and headed to the gym about 6 a.m. for a workout and then back home where I spent some time cleaning out the trailer basement (that’s what I call the storage area under the trailer’s bedroom).

Joan did more laundry and we headed to the Activity Office and made an application for next year’s Michigan Party. Michigan State beat the pants off the Ohio State Buckeyes in basketball today so there was another highlight for the day.

Frank at the Hiker - Biker party

Joan spent the late morning and early afternoon cleaning the trailer and getting things ready for the arrival of our friends Greg and Pam from Michigan on Monday.

Saturday night we went to the Tom Chestnut dance and had a great time. This was the first time we had attended one of his dances and it was really fun. We could have danced all night, but we got tired about 9:30 p.m. and went home.

Side notes: One of my favorite news segments here is the NBC affiliates weekly update on county kitchen inspections. “Kitchen Cops” is always entertaining and in addition to the list of bad restaurants, they always point out the places that get “excellent” ratings, so that’s fair. My only beef is that the worst ratings, which often include rat and mice droppings and other gross violations, comes out as a “Provisional” rating. I would think someone with a list of gross violations should have a much worst designation than that. How about a “Don’t Eat Here” rating. Or a “Completely Gross” designation.

Friends (Darcel on the right) at Hiker - Biker party

One of the restaurants that got an excellent rating this week was named “Dirt Bags.” I found that amusing.

Joan also caused me to laugh this week when I was watching a segment on the Today Show which featured Matt Lauer interning as an air traffic controller. “I like Matt Lauer, but I don’t want him handling my flight,” I told Joan.

“Don’t worry, they wouldn’t let him really do because the FAA would have a hysterical cow,” Joan said.

Not just have a cow, but a hysterical bovine. Joan has a tendency to make up phrases and words and I save them in a file called “Joanisms” on my computer. I’ll share a few with you later.